Bill Text: NY S00387 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Makes the failure to provide food, water or appropriate shelter to a companion animal (dogs and cats) left outside a felony punishable by a fine of not more than $5,000, or imprisonment for not more than 2 years, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 4-2)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - REFERRED TO DOMESTIC ANIMAL WELFARE [S00387 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S00387-Introduced.html


                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                           387
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                       (Prefiled)
                                     January 9, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced by Sens. TEDISCO, BOYLE, FELDER, HELMING, KAMINSKY, O'MARA --
          read  twice  and  ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to
          the Committee on Agriculture
        AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets  law,  in  relation  to  the
          provision of food, water and appropriate shelter for companion animals
          left outdoors
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. The opening paragraph of section 353 of the agriculture and
     2  markets law, as amended by chapter 523 of the laws of 2005,  is  amended
     3  to read as follows:
     4    A  person  who  overdrives,  overloads,  tortures  or cruelly beats or
     5  unjustifiably injures, maims, mutilates or  kills  any  animal,  whether
     6  wild  or  tame,  and  whether  belonging  to  himself  or to another, or
     7  deprives any animal, other than a companion animal, of necessary  suste-
     8  nance,  food  or drink, or neglects or refuses to furnish it such suste-
     9  nance or drink, or causes, procures or permits any animal  to  be  over-
    10  driven,  overloaded, tortured, cruelly beaten, or unjustifiably injured,
    11  maimed, mutilated or killed, or, being any animal other than a companion
    12  animal, to be deprived of necessary food or drink, or who wilfully  sets
    13  on  foot,  instigates,  engages  in,  or  in any way furthers any act of
    14  cruelty to any animal, or any act tending to produce  such  cruelty,  is
    15  guilty  of  a  class  A misdemeanor and for purposes of paragraph (b) of
    16  subdivision one of section 160.10 of the criminal procedure  law,  shall
    17  be treated as a misdemeanor defined in the penal law.
    18    §  2.    Section 353-b of the agriculture and markets law, as added by
    19  chapter 594 of the laws of 2003, is amended to read as follows:
    20    §  353-b.  Appropriate  shelter  for  [dogs]  companion  animals  left
    21  outdoors. 1. For purposes of this section:
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03622-01-9

        S. 387                              2
     1    (a)  "Physical condition" shall include any special medical needs of a
     2  dog due to disease, illness, injury, age or breed about which the  owner
     3  or person with custody or control of [the dog] a companion animal should
     4  reasonably be aware.
     5    (b)  "Inclement weather" shall mean weather conditions that are likely
     6  to adversely affect the health  or  safety  of  [the  dog]  a  companion
     7  animal,  including  but  not limited to rain, sleet, ice, snow, wind, or
     8  extreme heat and cold.
     9    (c) "[Dogs] Companion animals  that  are  left  outdoors"  shall  mean
    10  [dogs]  companion animals that are outdoors in inclement weather without
    11  ready access to, or the ability to enter, a house,  apartment  building,
    12  office building, or any other permanent structure that complies with the
    13  standards  enumerated  in  paragraph  (b)  of  subdivision three of this
    14  section.
    15    2. (a) Any person who owns or  has  custody  or  control  of  a  [dog]
    16  companion  animal  that  is  left outdoors shall provide it with shelter
    17  appropriate to its breed, physical condition and the climate. Any person
    18  who knowingly violates the provisions of this section shall be guilty of
    19  a [violation] felony, punishable by a  fine  of  not  [less  than  fifty
    20  dollars  nor] more than [one hundred] five thousand dollars [for a first
    21  offense, and a fine of not less than one hundred dollars nor  more  than
    22  two  hundred  fifty  dollars  for  a second and subsequent offenses], or
    23  imprisonment for not more than two years, or both such fine  and  impri-
    24  sonment.    Beginning seventy-two hours after a charge of violating this
    25  section, each day that a defendant fails to correct the deficiencies  in
    26  the  [dog]  shelter  for a [dog] companion animal that he or she owns or
    27  that is in his or her custody or control and that is left  outdoors,  so
    28  as to bring it into compliance with the provisions of this section shall
    29  constitute a separate offense.
    30    (b)  [The  court may, in its discretion, reduce the amount of any fine
    31  imposed for a violation of this section by the amount which the  defend-
    32  ant  proves  he or she has spent providing a dog shelter or repairing an
    33  existing dog shelter so that it complies with the requirements  of  this
    34  section.] Nothing in this paragraph shall prevent the seizure of a [dog]
    35  companion animal for a violation of this section pursuant to the author-
    36  ity granted in this article.
    37    3. Minimum standards for determining whether shelter is appropriate to
    38  a  [dog's]  companion animal's breed, physical condition and the climate
    39  shall include:
    40    (a) For [dogs] companion animals that are  restrained  in  any  manner
    41  outdoors,  shade  by  natural  or  artificial means to protect the [dog]
    42  companion animal from direct sunlight at  all  times  when  exposure  to
    43  sunlight is likely to threaten the health of the [dog] companion animal.
    44    (b)  For all [dogs] companion animals that are left outdoors in incle-
    45  ment weather, a housing facility, which  must:  (1)  have  a  waterproof
    46  roof;  (2)  be  structurally sound [with] so as to protect the companion
    47  animal from the inclement weather; (3) be appropriate for the  companion
    48  animal's  breed  and physical condition, and the climate; (4) have insu-
    49  lation appropriate  to  local  climatic  conditions  and  sufficient  to
    50  protect  the  [dog]  companion  animal from inclement weather; [(3)] (5)
    51  have four connected sides and a raised floor; (6) have a door maintained
    52  in good repair, that is offset and baffled, if necessary,  to  eliminate
    53  the  entry  of drafts and precipitation, and also allow the accumulation
    54  of body heat; provided,  further,  that  damaged  door  flaps  shall  be
    55  replaced;  (7)  be  constructed  to  allow  each  [dog] companion animal
    56  adequate freedom  of  movement  to  make  normal  postural  adjustments,

        S. 387                              3
     1  including  the  ability  to  stand up, turn around and lie down with its
     2  limbs outstretched; and [(4)] (8) allow for effective removal of  excre-
     3  tions, other waste material[;], dirt and trash. The housing facility and
     4  the  area immediately surrounding it shall be regularly cleaned to main-
     5  tain a healthy and sanitary environment and to minimize health hazards.
     6    (c) For companion animals that are restrained in any  manner  outdoors
     7  in an enclosure, such enclosure shall be set on a solid foundation, such
     8  as stone or concrete, or solid ground that is well drained.
     9    (d) For companion animals that are restrained in any enclosure, wheth-
    10  er  indoors  or  outdoors, the animal shall be provided with dry bedding
    11  and/or solid resting boards so as to conserve its body heat,  and  under
    12  no  circumstance  shall  a  companion  animal be forced to lie on a damp
    13  surface or upon unheated concrete or stone.
    14    4. Inadequate shelter may be indicated by the appearance of the  hous-
    15  ing  facility  itself,  including  but  not limited to, size, structural
    16  soundness, evidence of crowding within the housing  facility,  healthful
    17  environment in the area immediately surrounding such facility, or by the
    18  appearance or physical condition of the [dog] companion animal.
    19    5.  Upon a finding of any violation of this section, any [dog or dogs]
    20  companion animal or companion animals seized pursuant to the  provisions
    21  of  this article that have not been voluntarily surrendered by the owner
    22  or custodian or forfeited pursuant to court order shall be  returned  to
    23  the  owner  or  custodian  only  upon  proof that appropriate shelter as
    24  required by this section is being provided and  the  completion  of  any
    25  sentence of imprisonment imposed for violation of this section.
    26    6.   Nothing  in  this  section  shall  be  construed  to  affect  any
    27  protections afforded to [dogs] companion animals or other animals  under
    28  any other provisions of this article.
    29    §  3.  The  agriculture  and  markets  law  is amended by adding a new
    30  section 353-g to read as follows:
    31    § 353-g. Failure to provide proper  food  and  drink  to  a  companion
    32  animal.  Any  person  who,  having  ownership,  custody  or control of a
    33  companion animal, refuses or neglects to supply such animal a sufficient
    34  supply of food or water so as to impair  the  health  of  the  companion
    35  animal  shall  be  guilty  of a felony, punishable by a fine of not more
    36  than five thousand dollars, or imprisonment for not more than two years,
    37  or both such fine and imprisonment.
    38    § 4. Section 356 of the agriculture and markets  law,  as  amended  by
    39  chapter 458 of the laws of 1985, is amended to read as follows:
    40    § 356. Failure to provide proper food and drink to impounded animal. A
    41  person  who,  having  impounded  or  confined  any  animal, other than a
    42  companion animal, refuses or neglects to supply to  such  animal  during
    43  its  confinement  a  sufficient  supply of good and wholesome air, food,
    44  shelter and water, is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable  by  imprison-
    45  ment for not more than one year, or by a fine of not more than one thou-
    46  sand  dollars,  or  by  both.  In case any animal, including a companion
    47  animal, shall be at any time impounded as aforesaid, and shall  continue
    48  to  be  without necessary food and water for more than twelve successive
    49  hours, it shall be lawful for any person, from  time  to  time,  and  as
    50  often  as  it  shall  be  necessary, to enter into and upon any pound in
    51  which any such animal shall be so confined, and to supply it with neces-
    52  sary food and water, so long as it shall remain so confined; such person
    53  shall not be liable to any action for such  entry,  and  the  reasonable
    54  cost  of  such  food  and water may be collected by [him of] such person
    55  from the owner of such animal, and the said animal shall not  be  exempt
    56  from levy and sale upon execution issued upon a judgment therefor.

        S. 387                              4
     1    §  5.  This  act  shall  take  effect  on  the first of September next
     2  succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
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